Not the same old song and dance

New Dance Festival showcases hard work, innovation of professional dancers, professors

By Lindsay Casale, staff writer
Posted on September 10, 2007

The purpose of New Dance Festival is to provide audience members with a fresh concept of Contemporary Dance, and this year the performance did just that. Comprised of five original pieces, the show was two hours of impressive, sometimes bizarre, and thoughtful work.

Three professors and one alumna showcased their work. Heather Lundy, who graduated in ’94, mixed theatrics into her dance piece, which involved even more speaking than dancing. Lundy’s piece, entitled “Calming Betty,” used humor and language to display commentary on political and social issues in the world today. This piece was unusual but for the most part effective, as the audience laughed along with the absurdity of Lundy’s character.

Suzanne Miller-Corso performed her piece “Portraits of Me.” This dance relied heavily on props to convey Miller-Corso’s message. As the title suggests, the dance included a frame motif, with the performer trying desperately to fit into the frames given to her, with little success. The theme was clear and Miller-Corso’s dancing was expressive and elegant.

With the effective and understandable performances also came the unusual and confusing. Professor Shane O’Hara debuted his piece “Old Klown,” which was comprised of a series of sharp, isolated movements gradually growing towards motion of the entire body. The piece was interesting in theory, but slightly long-winded and anti-climactic.

The highlight of the festival was JMU’s guest company, BosmaDance. This group included five female performers clad in identical black outfits. Their piece, “Shelter” showcased impressive unified movement and weight-sharing, in which one dancer relies upon the other to hold his/her body weight in different positions.

The dance was fluid and at the same time choppy, while also being strange and artistic overall. Although it was unclear at times what the choreographer was trying to achieve, the dancers performed beautifully.

Though some of the performances of the New Dance Festival may not have struck a chord with the general audience, it cannot be said that the choreographers and dancers were lacking in originality and boldness, and because of this, they were successful.